Indigenous people are six times more likely than other Australians to go blind

Beawiharta, file photo: Reuters

The Fred Hollows Foundation has conducted an eye surgery blitz at the Alice Springs Hospital to improve poor eye health in Indigenous communities.

Indigenous people are six times more likely than other Australians to go blind, and figures show Central Australia and the Barkley region of the Northern Territory have the poorest eye health status in the country.

Around 30 patients travelled from more than 15 remote communities from across Central Australia to be in Alice Springs to get the surgery they need to restore their sight.

Angus Thornton, a project officer with the Fred Hollows Foundation, says the organisation aims to give people living in remote Indigenous communities the opportunity to access eye surgery.

"We try to target the people who have the greatest barriers to accessing eye surgery and the major target group there is people from remote Indigenous communities," he said.

The Fred Hollows Foundation has the support of local Aboriginal health care organisations and has brought in extra nurses from interstate to assist with the project.

"It's obviously wonderful to restore sight for anyone but for people living in remote communities, the people who have had eye surgery have regularly reported the joy of being able to see their kids and grand kids," Mr Thornton said.